Nowadays, learning languages from the comfort of your own home has become the norm. What’s more, this learning now transcends the boundaries of the English-speaking world, allowing you to study any other less widely spoken language without having to pack your bags.
Technology, in various formats and gradually, has been the architect of this linguistic evolution. What was initially a complement to traditional language teaching is now, paradoxically, a tool for in-house immersion.
Based on this, we can say that technology has brought about an unprecedented revolution in the field of language learning. It has eliminated geographical barriers, but also economic ones, democratising access to multilingualism, which was previously restricted to a few.
A simple internet connection: a window to the world, its cultural diversity and linguistic plurality
There are many ways in which technology facilitates foreign language learning. It provides us with digital tools, applications, online platforms and, of course, the full potential of artificial intelligence.
In addition, it enables 100% personalised language teaching, tailored to the consumer’s preferences, flexible and authentic. You decide where, when and how. You can use instant translators that process natural language, voice recognition tools that help you improve your pronunciation, and lessons designed on the spot for you, according to your time, level or content needs. And, of course, you can have conversations with native speakers (not always human).
Can you imagine being able to travel to London for an hour a day, go into its shops, listen to its people, walk its streets… and then press stop and return to your sofa instantly? Well, stop imagining, because this contextual language experience is also possible with a combination of virtual and augmented reality.
It is clear that the real experience will always surpass the virtual one, but as the former is more expensive in all aspects, the latter is a more than valid approximation.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, in today’s language learning, there is life beyond English.
It is true that the English language is a must for today’s professional profiles, but for some years now, it has been so prevalent that the younger generations experience learning it more naturally; it is almost their second language ‘by default’.
This, together with the aforementioned advances that technology has brought us in this area, has led to a growing interest in other languages. French, German… but also Chinese, Russian, Japanese and Arabic have gained followers, and along with the learning of these languages, the culture of their countries of origin is crossing borders.
Conclusions
Based on the above, as in so many other areas, technology has become our greatest ally, maximising the essential ability to communicate between humans and facilitating the building of solid bridges between the different cultures of today’s digital world, which is as globalised as it is pluralistic.
